A Shot in the Dark
by Serendipity73
Summary: sounds mysterious doesnt it?


Westlake corners Joe on the bridge after speeding to a stop in her Jeep. He fires two shots at her car,  
trying to stop her. She radios Frankie at the complex.  
"Frankie, he is stopped do it now." She says into the phone "Alright, here goes nothing."  
"I hope this works" She pleads, mostly to herself, but to anyone that will listen.  
"Me, too Westlake, me too." He pauses "Alright I did it, I am on my way. Be there in five."  
"Hurry Frankie"  
Westalke hung up the phone and started to get out of the car. She looked over towards the viper and saw Joe try to start it, but couldn't, then he got out of the viper.  
She stood up confident that maybe if he saw her,  
something would click and he wouldn't hurt her. Joe always told her that, she knew deep down that he was being true to his words. Westlake just hoped that this time he would do exactly that.  
Joe rounded the Viper as Westlake walked in front of her Jeep. She was looking straight at him as he was her. All of a sudden Joe raises his gun to her. This is not what she expected at all, then suddenly Joe leans over and holds his head in agony. Westlake slowly moved a bit closer to help him, on instinct.  
She was terrified something was going to go totally wrong, the doctor said that if the chip wasn't removed Joe would die. As soon as the attack come upon him it was over and he raised his gun again to her.  
"Joe? It's me Cameron."  
"No, you aren't going to take me in, I will kill you before that happens." He demands "No, look I am not going to arrest you. Don't you remember me? It's me Westlake?"  
"I don't know who you are and if you move any closer I will shoot."  
By this time Westlake has given up trying to hide the tears that were now freely coming down her cheeks.  
Then all of a sudden a shot rang out and she doubled over in pain, grasping her side.  
"No." She looked up at him as he was walking over,  
from her angle on the ground he looked like he was having another attack.  
When he reached her side she spoke again in a rasped voice "I thought you would never hurt me Joe."  
She tried to move a bit to see his face from where she was instead all that came out was "Oww"  
"Cameron?" Came a tiny voice from him, "Oh my god,  
what did I just do?"  
"Joe? Help me please…" She managed before she shut her eyes.  
"No, please stay here with me." He says before leaning over in pain again. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Frankie running towards him.  
"What happened?" He yelled As soon as he rounded the Jeep he saw her on the ground and dialed 911.  
"I shot her" Joe said "I didn't want to, but I couldn't stop." Joe pleads with Frankie "Hold on Westlake, help is on the way" Frankie says from beside her.  
"Joe get in the car" He told him "And don't move"  
"Frankie, Oww, my head really hurts."  
"I know, I am going to take you to the hospital to help you."  
Joe slumped into the back seat of the car and watched the ambulances arrive and treat Westlake and then take her to the hospital. He was nervous as hell. He just shot his partner, his best friend, the only person who cared for him, and he cared for. What was he going to do now.  
As Frankie got in to the car and locked the doors he called up and got the Viper and Westlake's car towed back to the complex.  
"Joe, look, can you tell me some of the symptoms you have been experiencing? And what the hell is going on?" Frankie asks "Well from what I remember, Marcus and I we, well he kidnapped a woman, I tried to stop him, but whatever I said didn't matter. I ended up letting her go before I met up with Westlake on the bridge."  
"Ever since I woke up in the Viper I was Michael Payton. But I kept having flashbacks about this Joe Astor and of the times he, I had with Westlake." He looks out the window for a moment and watches Westlake Jeep get put on the tow truck.  
"I had a flashback juts before, just before…" He pauses "It was of her telling me that if I ever did anything like that to her again she would kick my butt."  
"Did that happen Frankie?" He asks from the back seat "Yeah it did." Frankie pauses for a moment "I am going to get you help right now."  
  
About a few days later Joe had the implant removed,  
Frankie was very nervous about what was going to happen next to his friend. He had been through so much and he wanted to make this as painless as possible.  
The doctor had told him to surround him with friends and family for the next few weeks, bring to places he had recently been, talk about things that have recently happened. But he also told Frankie that he was going to have to make a decision on whether or not he is going to stick to his old life of Michael Payton or his other life as Joe Astor. Frankie was hoping he would pick the later one, but that was only a decision for Joe/Payton to answer for himself.  
Meanwhile Westlake was in ICU recovering. Frankie had come and stayed with her everyday for a few hours. The rest of her time was spent sleeping thinking what went wrong in Joe and her relationship that he would do this to her. On many occasions Joe told her he would never but her in any danger, he would never hurt her again. She was positive that if Joe saw he at the bridge, he would go with her, peacefully.  
This is what hurt the most. He once never came to see her in the hospital either. Maybe if they could talk about what happened, they could get through it. But this was it, Joe Astor didn't exist anymore. She started to cry, figures once she truly fell in love with someone, they wouldn't even exist anymore. She hated this, being alone that is, she was always alone.  
Except when Joe was with her.  
Frankie came in a few moments later "Westlake?" He asks "Yeah.." She says between sniffles Frankie walks over and sits next to her bed.  
"What's wrong? What are the tears for?" he asks her "I am tired Frankie. Tired of being alone."  
"Westlake I don't understand." He says as he takes her hand in his.  
"Have you ever fallen in love with a person and have them not fell the same as you?" She asks "Yeah, once it was awful. But I got over it and moved on. Well not over it, but I did move on."  
"Yeah, you know if we could just talk about everything, Frankie, maybe we could move forward. But he hasn't even come to visit me. And we are in the same hospital." She says tears starting to spill again.  
"I know Westlake, I am sorry. I spoke to him about you. He is scared Westlake, not that, that makes it right that he hasn't come forward."  
"How is everything with him? Did the operation go good?" She asks "Everything is fine, they removed the chip and there was no lasting damage. The doctors said that he will have to choose a life style, and to surround him with friends, family and people who love and care about him…" Frankie realizes what he has just said "So I take it that he doesn't care about me anymore,  
friendship or otherwise.." She whispers "Westlake, I know he is very confused at this point,  
and he is really feeling very guilty about…you."  
"Guilty? Why?"  
"He remembered you, he knew his feelings about you when he did this, but couldn't help himself. Joe admitted on our ride here that just before,  
everything, he had flashbacks of things you guys had done together and things that were said to one another."  
"Yeah but you could easily know these things Frankie."  
"No, these were personal things Westlake, I had no clue." He pauses "He was physically upset, I mean really upset."  
"I wish I could go see him, I need to know he I okay."  
"After everything, you still love him don't you?"  
Frankie asked Westlake just looked up at him through teary eyes and nodded her affirmation.  
"You need some sleep." Frankie begins as he stands up "We need you better. I will be back later on."  
"Okay, bye"  
  
About a hour later Frankie was sitting with Joe.  
"So how is Cameron?" Joe asks "She is doing okay. Doctors say she is going to be moved from ICU later on this afternoon."  
"That's great" Joe says enthusically, but seeing Frankies expression calms down "I mean that good."  
"Joe?"  
"Yeah.."  
"Why haven't you gone and seen her yet?"  
"I don't know why?" he says "Because Joe, are you willing to lose the best thing that has come into your life over a mistake?"  
"The mistake is that I shot her, Frankie. I couldn't keep a firm mind on who she was and I shot her. How could she ever forgive me?"  
"You aren't even willing to try?"  
"She doesn't want to see me anymore. How could someone like her ever care about me again? I lied to her again and put her in danger again and almost killed her."  
"Westlake cares a lot about you, more than you know."  
"What is that supposed to mean?" Joe asks "Look I shouldn't be saying this, mostly because it is not my place, but since you insist on playing innocent, she still loves you Joe. Always have, and always will. She wants to talk, work through this.  
Help you get better." Frankie states as he moves towards the door "Oh and Joe I wouldn't wait to long to see her, when I last spoke with her, she was a mess."  
That night Joe went to see Westlake in the hospital.  
The nurses had let him in anytime according to Frankie's orders.  
Joe stops at the door and looks through the window at his sleeping partner and friend.  
"Oh Cameron" He says as she sits next to her and brush her hair away from her face "I am so sorry"  
Joe falls asleep next to her for a few hours like that, he woke up when someone was calling his name softly.  
"Joe? Joe? Argh Joe?"  
"Shhh, Cameron, I am right here." He says getting up and trying to wake her up as quietly as possible.  
"Cameron, wake up, it's me Joe. I am right here." Joe says as he takes her hand and puts it up to his cheek.  
Cameron shakes her head and slowly opens her eyes "Joe is that you?"  
"Yeah Cameron, it's me." Joe says as he sits on the edge of the bed.  
"Humm, I missed you." Westlake says Joe smiles "I missed you too."  
"Tired Joe."  
"Go back to sleep Cameron…" Joe starts "Be here when I wake up?" She asks "Always Cameron, always."  
And with that Cameron went back to sleep. Joe sat here for a bit holding her hand then went back to the chair, he told her, that he would be there in the morning, so he was going to wait it out.  
A little later Frankie showed up to check on both Joe and Westlake "Joe?" He called out softly "Humm.."  
"Joe? Come on wake up."  
"Yeah, what's up Frankie." Joe says. He had fallen asleep next to Westlake, still holding her hand in his.  
"I see everything is going better between you guys."  
He starts Joe sits up and stretches a bit to look at Frankie.  
"I realized something Frankie. Something that I always new was there, but didn't recognize until now."  
"Yeah and what's that Joe?"  
"That what is most important in a persons life is the people who care about you, love, respect, family, and friendship."  
"You are right Joe."  
"Do you remember what the doctor said, that I would have to make a decision about my life, and stick to that?"  
"Yeah."  
"Well, in this life, I have all of that. I may not have family, but I have you, Sherman, and, and Cameron." Joe says as he takes her hand in his again.  
"I can't lose you or her, or any of this. You guys are everything."  
Frankie stands up and puts a hand on his shoulder and squeezes a bit. "I will see you later on Joe, I have a few things to finish up."  
"Alright Frankie, Bye"  
A few moments later Joe closed his eyes and went back to sleep.  
He woke up a small time later to Cameron brushing his hair a bit to the side.  
"Is that you?" She asked "Cameron, you awake?"  
"Yeah."  
"It's me Joe. How are you feeling?" He asked as he moved into her line of view.  
A smile came over her face as soon as she saw him. "I dreamt you were here last night and here you are."  
"It wasn't a dream, I was here, I never left."  
"Good." Was her reply.  
After they had breakfast and talked a bit about the everyday stuff that was going on. Joe felt like it was time to tell her, about him. He needed to talk with her about this, needed to get it off his chest so to speak.  
"Cameron, I..I want to tell you a few things."  
"Joe what is it?"  
"When I was brought here, I had the chip removed" He paused at the look on her face. "What?"  
"I am sorry."  
"What are you sorry for?" Joe asks "I don't know who you are anymore."  
"Cameron, let me continue." Joe says as he takes her hands in his "The doctor's said that it was fried, and if it didn't get removed I would die. They also said that I would be fine, I would heal. But it would be a difficult trail. I need my friends, and family to help me through this. But most of all he told me that I would have to make a decision."  
"What kind of decision Joe?"  
"Whether to stay as my criminal self, Michael Payton or as Joe Astor." He says as he looks down at their combined hands "And what was your decision?" Cameron asked nervously "You. That's my decision." Joe says A smile crosses her face as she looks up at him and her eyes start to well up with tears "I.. I can't live without you." Joe pauses "I can't believe I am the one who put you in here, like this."  
"It's okay Joe." She starts but Joe cut her off.  
"Not it's not Cameron. No it's not."  
"I forgive you" Cameron says "And I love you."  
Joe looks back up at her "I don't deserve you."  
"Yes you do, Joe. You are a good person, don't ever doubt that."  
He leaned down and kissed her for the first time, and definatly not the last. 


End file.
